Sunday, May 23, 2010

Into the Heart of L.A. with Rocco DiSpirito - from the heart

And so the day has to come to an end. Still sated from Scoops, our "Into the Heart of L.A." Culinary Group poured out of the limo (I could get used to saying that) and immediately hit delectable, pungent air. You knew immediately that this cheese store would deliver. What good is a cheese store if it does not boldly announce itself?

The aromas did not disappoint. Inside was a world of cheese, a world of flavor and the exploration began. Wines, earthy olive oils, crackers, a myriad of vinegars and condiments filled the shelves. But the cheeses took center stage. The gracious owner, Norbert of the Beverly Hills Cheese Shop had set up a test for us - similar to a Bertolli'sWebisode "Into the Heart of Italy." Three cheeses are produced and you need to guess which one is from a cow, a goat and a sheep. The bloggers did very well. I had had only one sample thus far and was clueless. Although I certainly devoured the taleggio (cow) right after, accompanied with some shaved, salty prosciutto. The velvety cream in the taleggio really enhanced the sharpness of the prosciutto - it was mighty fine. My appetite returned.

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Purchases later, we were off to our final destination: The wine/food pairing with Rocco DiSpirito.

Rocco came during our tasting session. Our first plate was Involitini Di Manzo (Kobe A-5 beef, Delta asparagus, enoki mushrooms and some ParmigianoReggiano. Accompanied by a light red wine: Nebbiolod'Alba, giacosafratelli; 2007 Piedmont) - the first taste melted slowly into my mouth beginning with the soft-as-butter Kobe beef and ending with just a touch of the poetical asparagus.

This was followed by CaponatadiCarciofi (baby artichokes, Castelvetrano green olives, San Marzano tomato) accompanied by PinotBianco, haberle, aloislageder, Alto adige 2007. This is a heartier white wine than your sipping PinotGrigio and enhanced the piquant olives, rich artichokes and the sweet tomatoes. I am playing with this combination in Minnesota. Baby artichokes are hard to find. Maybe some tangy artichoke hearts to replace it?

Rocco spoke of his recipes. "Did you try the meatballs?" he asked again and again (you definitely knew he was proud of his make-over-lower-the-fat-cut-the-calories meatball recipe!) He posed with all of us (above with Sarah Gim from www.theDeliciousLife and http://www.tastespotting.com/). Sarah was instrumental in planning our trip. She helped create an agenda where we would would experience L.A.'s freshest and finest food finds.

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Rocco was definitely enamoured by the Kobe beef. At $250/lb. this is not your average grocery store beef. He wanted us to see the marbling that created the velvet texture and a huge hunk was brought to the table - to admire and to photograph. In the end, Rocco found himself upstaged by a slab of beef!

He didn't mind.

And he graciously returned to signing books and being photographed.

We spoke of Jamaica, Queens (his birthplace and mine). After a winter of cooking, I only had to look at the L.A. photos before I went into shock. Hence, my decision to "cook his book." Two weeks later, four pounds shed.

Brimming with the goodness of L.A., we soared into our the waiting limo for one last ride back to the hotel. Mandy serenaded us with "O Sol Mio" as we quietly sat soaking in the events of the day. It was a touching ending to an extraordinary event.

Bertolli Foods wanted us to experience local, fresh, artisanal and care of foods. Without going to Italy, they wanted to convey that what we experienced in L.A. is what Bertolli experiences as they create their frozen dinners - from prime ingredients, artisan products and respect and love of food. And this is what they\hope you will experience in a superior prepared food product. That is for you to judge.

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Their generosity shone in that trip by supplying us all with the an experience for the memory bank. And while Bertolli paid for all my expenses, my subsequent reporting is my own. From my heart. Why do otherwise? Every meal prepared is personal. Every glance, every moment, every exchange - it's always personal. Why not let the personal be from the heart?

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We all went our separate ways - but Pat and I would meet up later (ostensibly for dinner - but who wanted to eat after our ten-hour feast?) and wound up on the rooftop of the Thompson Hotel, taking in the sights, sounds and aromas of L.A. at night and talking of family, friends, foods, art, history and more. We bought each other a round of drinks, chattering, glancing, sipping, laughing and all the while I am thinking, "You know, Pat - I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." And that, my friends, is from the heart.

What a wonderful tale to share, Claudia. What a fun and amazing trip you had. But that saffron risotto croquette, mozzarella di bufala, tomato sugo dish really caught my eye, as did that handsome Rocco! Bertolli is definitely looking good.

Even with the economy a problem, they went out their way to make your visit memorable. That is really nice.It is great fun to get to see some of the bloggers we read about. I hope you are having a wonderful day.o